


from here until forever

by falloutmars



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Fluff, Meet-Cute, jughead is archies best man, meeting at our friends wedding au, they hit it off, varchie wedding but bughead fic, with a lil twist, writer!Jug, writer!betty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-17
Updated: 2020-05-17
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:54:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24232414
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/falloutmars/pseuds/falloutmars
Summary: Being Archie’s best man is not what Jughead wants. He loves Archie, of course he does. They’ve been best friends since they were both running around in diapers in the Andrews’ perfect backyard. Being his best man makes sense, but he sure as hell doesn’t want it.–or, being Archie's best man may have its drawbacks, but it definitely has its benefits.
Relationships: Archie Andrews/Veronica Lodge, Betty Cooper/Jughead Jones
Comments: 20
Kudos: 69
Collections: 7th Bughead Fanfiction Awards - Nominees





	from here until forever

**Author's Note:**

> title comes from me googling "wedding quotes" 
> 
> enjoy!
> 
> (warning for alcohol)

Being Archie’s best man is _not_ what Jughead wants. He loves Archie, of course he does. They’ve been best friends since they were both running around in diapers in the Andrews’ perfect backyard. Being his best man _makes sense_ , but he sure as hell doesn’t want it.

And of course, Archie has to be marrying the most extra woman he’s ever met. 

Veronica Lodge, practically New York royalty - or so she thinks - has single-handedly planned their wedding to be the biggest wedding in history, Jughead’s sure of it. More people than he can comprehend, an extravagant theme he can’t remember, and far too much pressure to deliver a funny but timely best man’s speech. 

Being a writer, it shouldn’t be difficult. He is literally paid to write on a day to day basis. But for some reason, it takes him weeks to write it. And then Veronica _suggests_ improvements, so he spends another week editing it until she’s happy with it. And _then_ it takes him the final two weeks leading up to the wedding to learn it.

Definitely not an enjoyable experience. 

And before he knows it, the day of the wedding arrives. 

Surprisingly enough, Veronica does not demand a rehearsal. Something to do with only wanting one wedding day, he’s not sure, but he doesn’t dare question it. Instead, he takes the extra time to perfect his speech and try not to drown in nerves. He’s a writer, yeah, not a public speaker. 

The wedding ceremony passes in a blur, as does most of the reception. It’s a beautiful ceremony, and he feels like a proud brother watching Archie say _I do_. Watching Fred tear up makes him tear up, too. Overall, he doesn’t think it could’ve gone any better for the newlyweds. By the look of Veronica’s face, he thinks she’d be inclined to agree. 

After photos in the incredible Church grounds that make Jughead wish he would’ve brought his own camera, everyone makes their way to the 5* hotel Veronica picked for the reception. He rides with Fred and Mary, managing not to get involved with anyone from the very large Lodge side. 

At the reception, Archie and Veronica make their grand entrance. It’s nothing less than Jughead expected, and as much as he hates to admit it, he’s actually having a nice time. 

That is, at least, until he remembers the speech is yet to come. 

And soon enough, he’s standing in front of a vast sea of unrecognizable faces, telling them all about the time, at 16, Archie told him he would marry Veronica one day. 

It goes well, he thinks. Everyone laughs in the right places, no one seems achingly bored by the end of it, and Veronica is smiling uncontrollably. All in all, he’s pleased. 

He sits through the first dance, sipping a glass of overly expensive champagne. He watches with an unusual feeling of jealousy. Or envy, he supposes. For the first time in this process, he wants what they have. It’s not a feeling he can comprehend easily, so he manages to push it to the back of his mind and focus on making the rest of the day enjoyable for his best friend and his new wife. 

Once the first dance is over, Jughead decides he better try to mingle a little bit. But not before another drink. 

He’s sitting at the bar, awaiting the attention of the bartender, when a blonde woman sits on the stool next to him. 

“Your speech was great,” she tells him, having to half-shout over the music.

He looks over at her, smiling. She’s strikingly beautiful, he thinks, but that thought gets pushed away. “Thanks. I’m glad, to be honest,” he tries to joke. 

The woman sends him a slightly confused smile back.

“I’m a writer,” he says by way of an explanation. 

Her eyes light up. “Me too!”

Jughead opens his mouth to reply, wanting to find out more about this, but the bartender, eyes fixed on the woman beside him, interrupts him. 

“What can I get you, miss?” he asks, staring her up and down. “And I can take your number as payment.” 

He’s leaning over the bar, trying to edge closer to the woman. Jughead can sense her discomfort, but in his own awkwardness, he’s unsure what to do. He doesn’t want to jump in, thinking he can save her from this when he’s sure she can do it for herself. But he also doesn’t want to let this situation unfold in front of him. 

Luckily, the woman takes it upon herself to sort this unnecessary bartender out. 

“Firstly, it’s an open bar,” she points out, assertiveness evident in her voice. “And secondly, I’ll get a large red wine. Please.” She looks over at Jughead. “What would you like, _babe_?”

He’s shocked for a moment, but she kicks him gently under the bar and her eyes are pleading with him, so he plays along. 

Sliding off the stool, he stands as close to her as he thinks is appropriate for potentially a pretend boyfriend. He flings his arm around her, too, just for added effect.

“White for me. Large,” he says, risking a kiss to the side of her head. He hopes he doesn’t overstep the line with that, but the face of the bartender is worth a potential (and warranted) punch from her. 

The bartender audibly _tuts_ at them, rolling his eyes, before he practically storms off. He returns just a few moments later, not long enough for neither Jughead nor the woman to react or move. He ungraciously dumps two wine glasses in front of them without a word, disappearing again. 

At that, Jughead slowly removes his arm from her, mumbling, “I’m sorry,” as he takes his drink. 

She shakes her head. “I’ll be having words with Veronica about him.”

He just nods, turning to remove himself from her company. But a tap on his arm stops him in his tracks. 

“Do you–” the woman gestures towards the door “–wanna get some air?”

When he nods, she picks up her drink, taking his hand and leading him away from the busy reception room. She takes him through the hotel, out through a back door he didn’t know existed.

Outside, it’s warm still, even though it’s getting dark. Perfect wedding weather, he thinks. There’s no one else around either, but he guesses that’s why she brought him here. 

She drops his hand now, moving to lean against the wall, so he stands opposite her.

“Sorry about that,” he says again, taking a sip of his wine so he can divert his attention slightly. 

“It wasn’t your fault,” she replies. “Thanks for stepping in.”

He risks a glance at her and smiles sheepishly.

She smiles back and says, “I’m Betty, by the way.”

“Jughead. But you know that.”

“I do,” she giggles.

At her words, his brain begins unfairly imagining her saying them in a different situation. Much like today but small, he thinks, getting far too ahead of himself. 

Instead, he asks her about her writing. She tells him that she writes young adult mystery novels, her eyes bright with pride as she talks about the franchise she writes for. He’s heard of them, surprisingly. The Baxter Brothers. His younger sister reads them, and he mentions to Betty she’ll be over the moon when he tells her of this interaction. 

Time passes around them, both seemingly having forgotten their whereabouts. Jughead’s sure that Archie will be looking for him soon, but he’s far too taken in by this woman to bring himself to care. 

Eventually, once the sun has finally set, they decide to go back inside. 

As they reenter the main reception area, Jughead sees the bartender from earlier heading straight towards them. He grabs Betty’s arm and backs out the door into the corridor. 

“It’s him again,” he says, slightly panicked. Not that he should be, it’s not _him_ he’s after. But he seems to have adopted a need to protect Betty unnecessarily in such a short time. 

She doesn’t seem as concerned as him. Instead, a smirk spreads across her face. “Kiss me.”

“What?” 

“Kiss me.”

He doesn’t need telling again. He closes the gap between them, lips meeting in a heated kiss. His hands come up to cup her face, and hers come up to grip onto his arms. She takes a step backward, taking him with her, until her back hits the wall, groaning into his mouth.

Jughead doesn’t stop kissing her at all, even when the sound of the door opening threatens to interrupt them. Something in his mind registers the noise, but he decides that it’s just the bartender they’re trying to throw off. 

He does not expect it to be Veronica Andrews-Lodge. 

“You two work faster than me, so I see.” 

**Author's Note:**

> not entirely sure what this it tbh, but i hope you liked it! 
> 
> thank you for reading! i appreciate all comments and kudos a lot
> 
> hope you're staying safe. see you soon


End file.
